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Calabasas DUI Attorney

September 2, 2016

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Calabasas DUI Attorney
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What comes after a DUI arrest?
How can a Calabasas Drunk Driving Defense attorney help you?

Calabasas DUI Attorney

If you’re being charged with a DUI, a Calabasas DUI attorney services are highly recommended because a DUI received in Calabasas might be prosecuted by very tough prosecutors in Los Angeles. A DUI conviction can result in jail time, very high fines, and a suspension of your driver’s license. You must act quickly to protect your rights to a DMV hearing because you have only 10 days from the arrest date to request a hearing or your driver’s license can be suspended automatically. It is very important to seek a Calabasas DUI attorney’s help as soon as possible. Our Calabasas DUI attorney will request the DMV hearing for you if you retain the services of Calabasas DUI attorney within ten days of arrest.

Calabasas DUI expert charges

The Courts where Calabasas DUI are filed have a very aggressive policy towards DUI cases. Failing to retain an attorney on a defensible case is extremely reckless and might cause you not only loss of driving privilege and payment of fees, but also possible jail time. The penalties for DUI convictions are controlled by California state law and get more severe with each subsequent conviction. A first-time DUI conviction has mandatory fines of $390.00 plus penalties and assessments. However, a first-offense DUI conviction will also result in the loss of a driver’s license and a possible jail time of up to 6 months in the county jail. A subsequent DUI conviction can result in an increased jail time of up to 1 year in the county jail and an even longer driver’s license suspension.

In contrast to misdemeanor DUI cases, Felony DUI cases can be punished by being jailed in the state prison for a period of time from 16 months to 3 years even or longer for aggravated DUI. In addition to possible jail time, a first-time DUI conviction, as a term of probation, requires a three-month DUI class at your personal expense and also mandatory fines and fees to be paid to the court. If the blood alcohol level is above .20, the prosecutor will ask for a 9 months alcohol program. The insurance rate increase after a DUI can and does reach several thousand dollars. Also, if you are given jail time as a condition of your probation, you must report to the probation office as soon as you are released. Most DUI arrests in Calabasas are done by the County Sheriff’s office located at:

Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department:
Malibu/Lost Hills Sheriff Station
27050 Agoura Road
Agoura, CA 91301
818-878-1808

What comes after a DUI arrest?

If you were arrested for a DUI in Calabasas, you can be taken to the local jail and released from there on your own recognizance. Often, Calabasas DUI arrestees can be taken to the closes fully stuffed jail in the valley, located in Van Nuys LAPD station. If the arresting officer decided to release you on your own recognizance, you will be cited to the court several weeks from the arrest date. If you are not released on a promise to appear (also called “on our own recognizance or OR”), you will be required to post bail. After the arrest, the police officer will prepare a police report and submit it to the prosecutor for filing consideration.

Once the prosecutor reviews the police report, he or she will make a decision about what charges to file in your case. This decision will involve filing all enhancements, such as prior DUI cases, speeding, and high blood alcohol level enhancements. Sometimes the prosecutor will reject the case from filing – such as when the prosecutor believes that he cannot prove the case “beyond a reasonable doubt”, the standard of proof in criminal courts.

If the prosecutor files the criminal case, you can face several charges in addition to the arrest charge, which is usually VC 23152(a) or (b). Calabasas DUI Attorney can help you fight any criminal charges filed by the prosecutor or the arresting officer.

As a first priority, a DMV hearing must be requested. Failure to request a DMV hearing within 10 days of arrest will result in loss of the hearing right and a semi-automated procedure where you will most likely lose your driver’s license. At the time the hearing is requested, Calabasas DUI attorney will also request a stay of the suspension to make sure you are allowed to drive while you are waiting for the hearing. Lastly, Calabasas DUI attorney will also request the police reports and will receive them usually prior to any court hearings.

The first day in court is called an arraignment. The arraignment is a court hearing where you are presented with charges and given an opportunity to enter a plea. Depending on the court, Calabasas DUI attorney might recommend that the arraignment is postponed while we review the police reports. During the arraignment, an important issue of release usually comes up. The judge might decide to set bail, or increase bail, or impose conditions of release which might include self-help classes, such as AA, and/or alcohol monitoring. Often right at arraignment, Calabasas DUI attorney can negotiate a favorable deal with the prosecutor.

If your case needs to be litigated or if the negotiation fails, Calabasas DUI attorney can enter a plea of not guilty for you and select a pretrial date. The pretrial date will be set in a different courtroom, which, can be very important for your case. It is recommended that you have the help of an experienced DUI defense attorney at this stage of the proceedings.

If you enter a plea of not guilty, you have a right to a jury trial within 45 days of arraignment if you are out of custody. That right is 30 days if you are in custody. Usually, in Los Angeles County, misdemeanor cases go to trial within 90 days of arraignment. During the period when the case can go to trial, you can schedule several pre-trials where various aspects of your DUI case can be litigated. In addition to the trial preparation, Calabasas DUI attorney can file various motions to get a better deal, to get a dismissal of DUI charges, or to set the case for trial.

Calabasas DUI cases are filed in Van Nuys Courthouse. If your case is a misdemeanor, it will be filed in Department 103 of the Los Angeles County Superior Court. If your case is a felony, it will be filed in Department 100 of Los Angeles County Superior Court. Even though many DUI cases are resolved without trial, please talk to Calabasas DUI attorney about a jury trial. Often, setting a case for a jury trial will get you a favorable deal because the prosecutor does not want to take the case for trial.

Van Nuys Courthouse West
14400 Erwin Street Mall
Van Nuys, CA 91401

How can a Calabasas Drunk Driving Defense Attorney help you?

If you’re pulled over for driving under the influence, the evidence against you is rarely foolproof. The usual tactics of a Calabasas DUI attorney are to find weaknesses in the government’s case and persuade the court or the prosecutor to give you a great deal or ask for the dismissal of your Calabasas DUI case.

For example, a Calabasas DUI attorney can dispute the chemical analysis of your blood or breath. Breathalyzers and blood tests can be very inaccurate, given false-positive or usually high results depending on factors such as the inaccuracy of the machine, a failure to preserve the sample properly, your health condition, diet, or even such factors as chewing gum or using mouthwash shortly before the test. The results of breathalizers can also be inaccurate because the breathalyzer will not be properly calibrated.

In addition to attacking the chemical test, Calabasas DUI attorney can examine the police report and see if your rights were violated. Some violations of constitutional rights will result in the dismissal of your case, other will result in a sanction against the government or exclusion of your statements. During the discovery process, your attorney can request all documentary evidence in possession of the police, including video recordings, audio recordings, supplemental reports, and communication between police officers and dispatch. Analysis of this evidence can often produce impeachment, where the statement of the arresting officer in one part will not match the statement of the arresting officer in another part. This can be used to your advantage, sometimes helping to get dismissals of Calabasas DUI.

Lastly, most people who face DUI prosecution will submit to some field sobriety tests. Despite what most people believe, submitting to field sobriety tests will not help you avoid a DUI in Calabasas. If you performed poorly on the field sobriety tests, most police officers will arrest you for a DUI. If you perform well on the field sobriety tests, most police will determine that you have developed a tolerance to alcohol. But, if you did not do well on the field sobriety tests, don’t despair, call Calabasas DUI attorney for a free consultation about your case. Calabasas DUI attorney can help explain poor performance on the field sobriety tests because of sleepiness, anxiety, or fatigue. So call Calabasas DUI attorney for help.

We fight for you to get the best deals and to avoid criminal record or license suspension